Office playlist: The top music preferences of employees

Should employers allow music in the workplace?

Office playlist: The top music preferences of employees

It's no secret that playing music at work can boost productivity, but the bigger question is: what kind of music are employees listening to?

One pop song may help one employee focus, while distracting another. Similarly, a classical piece might boost productivity for one person, but lull another to sleep.

Kickresume recently asked 1,625 respondents all over the world to get suggestions on their new office playlist, receiving answers ranging from different decades.

Landing on top is Sia's "Unstoppable," followed by A.R. Rahman's "Jai Ho." Hans Zimmer's "Cornfield Chase," which was featured on the 2014 film Interstellar, placed third on the list.

On the other hand, the artist with the highest number of suggested songs on Kickresume's playlist is Taylor Swift, with 14 tracks overall.

She is followed by Eminem with nine songs and Arijit Singh with eight songs, according to the report.

Music at work

Kickresume's research revealed that 43% of employees listen to music for one to three hours during their workday, with those in Education & Academia, Arts & Design, and Finance & Accounting averaging seven hours per workday.

The presence of music at work comes as 69% of the respondents say this boosts their productivity, focus, and motivation.

Another 17% said it is helpful for certain tasks, but not essential, while 12% said music serves as a background-noise killer.

But while the majority don't mind having music around in the workplace, less than two per cent said playing music at work can be a distraction and a productivity killer, the report found.

To ensure that all employees are accommodated with their preferences, 39% of the respondents said their employers have an "headphones-only" policy when it comes to listening to music.

Another 45% said there are no rules, but they are expected to be considerate when listening to music at work.

Interestingly, some employers are strict when it comes to lyrics – with seven per cent banning explicit lyrics at work and two per cent only allowing instrumental music.